Broken Connection

6

I was fuming as I stomped my way home. Since I felt the first signs of the soulmate bond when I was thirteen I haven't even thought about dating another person. Not one time did I say yes to anyone that asked me out, and I surely didn't approach them.

I always knew that my soulmate might not behave the same way as me, but I never expected to see a look of disgust on their face. Not once did it cross my mind that my soulmate might not want me.

I knew his name now. Johnny. A lot of good that did me. I didn't want to know his name if he was going to react like that when he found me. I hadn't been picturing myself running into his arms, but a 'hello it's really great to meet you let's get to know each other' would have been really nice. I would have even settled for 'I'm sorry I get into a fight every other day that must suck for you'.

I was nearly to my door when I felt a light tug on my sleeve. It was polite and timid, like the person knew I was definitely not in the mood to talk but desperately needed to say something. I turned to see a worried Taeyong biting his lip. His face only got more worried when he took in my appearance.

I knew my face was probably bright red. I had the dried tracks of tears running down my cheeks as well as new ones still coming from my eyes, and I could feel the snot trying to escape my nose. My arm was red from the slight burn, and my wrist was still bruised from the night before. My knee that had been scabbed over had begun to bleed through the fabric of my jeans. I was a mess.

"What happened back there?" He asked me as softly as he had spoken the night before.

It was like he was speaking to a wounded animal, which I guess I was.

"He's my soulmate, Taeyong. He's my soulmate and he hates me and he already has a girlfriend and I'm tired and I just want to go home and cry."

The last part came out as a sob, and before I knew it I had been wrapped into a warm hug. I knew my snot was probably on his shirt, and my tears had definitely soaked through to his skin, but I buried my face deeper and wrapped my small fingers into the fabric. When I was very young my father stopped doing things like this, and my mother was never one to be warm. Physical comfort was rare in my life, but it calmed me down much faster than anything Taeyong could have said.

Suddenly that comfort was ripped from me, and I was face to chest with a very angry Johnny.

"What the fuck was that stunt?" He didn't shout, but he said it in the deathly calm way that let you know a storm was brewing and you should get inside before the lightning struck.

"You're an asshole," I said before turning to walk away.

Johnny reached out to catch my arm and make me speak, but the arm he caught was the one that was burnt and bruised, prompting a small scream of pain from me and a wince from him. That was enough for Taeyong to step between us once more.

During the hug my tears had stopped, but I could feel my throat tightening again. I backed up swiftly towards my apartment, keeping my eyes on the two men. Johnny was trying to push past Taeyong, and Taeyong was having trouble holding him back. Johnny made a wild break for it, and Taeyong swung his fist in what seemed a knee jerk reaction, connecting heavily with Johnny's stomach.

I knew exactly how hard Taeyong could hit now. My vision blurred and the breath left my lungs. I fell to my knees coughing and gagging, and suddenly all of the commotion that had been coming from the two stopped.

Johnny didn't seem to be phased by the hit at all, which was odd to me.

"You felt that?" Johnny asked in an incredulous voice.

"How could I not feel that?" I wheezed out, "We're soulmates you dickwad."

"I didn't feel it, though," he said.

That made me more confused than ever, but instead of staying to figure things out I forced myself to my feet and down the half a block to the door of my apartment building.